Here in Your Arms
by Kur0shiro
Summary: 4th: But Chrome grew worried as she waited and waited. / A series of somewhat unrelated one shots inspired by hellogoodbye's Here In Your Arms. Hibari/Chrome 1896
1. 01 Where we are

" _I like  
where we are,__when we drive  
in your car.  
I like  
where we are;  
__**here**__. "_

Despite having almost a dozen people inside the limousine, there was not a soul making any sort of noise. Even Lambo and I-Pin who usually plays together whenever there is nothing to do are hushed and are close to falling asleep. The sole female Vongola guardian shifted from her initial position and tried to make herself comfortable and unfazed by the almost oppressive atmosphere that hung around the car.

She thought of why the boss would have thought of such a trip when there was a battle that was waiting to erupt any second now and dragged everyone associated to the Vongola (except his parents, of course) to somewhere. Maybe it was something to increase the morale of everyone, but instead of socializing, most of the passengers were sleeping or blankly staring at the distance. Sadly, the host was part of the former.

After an hour comprised of little chit-chat with the other females and small talk with the guardians in front of her, everyone eventually grew tired of even trying not to fall asleep. Even Yamamoto, the only one with guts to actually initiate conversation soon gave up as everyone showed signs of not understanding what he was trying to say.

Chrome tried to close her eyes and drift off to sleep but when she thought she had slept for a long time already, only ten minutes have passed and realized she was the only one awake. After all, they left at an ungodly hour for a place no one knew where. She could not even hear Mukuro's voice in her head now, but she could not go back to sleep. After staring at her nails then her boots for an hour or so, she decided to look at whoever her eyes fall upon.

Just beside her were Haru and Kyoko, sleeping as their heads fell upon the other's shoulder. Lambo and I-Pin used their laps as their beds and snored lightly. Bianchi was a little farther from them, so that she could see Reborn from the lightly tinted window that separated them from the driver, the boss and his tutor. In front of them was Yamamoto, clutching his sword on one hand. A little farther from him was Gokudera whose head bobbed from left to right as it fought gravity. A striking contrast from his personality, Ryohei was sleeping like a log as if he was in a bed, thus occupying quite a large space. But the limousine was actually spacious (cannot expect less from the top mafia family, after all) so it was not such a big deal for her.

Her attention was then focused to the sole guardian at the farthest end of the car. Hibari Kyouya was sleeping, with arms crossed as if he was observing everyone who was in front of him. Not that he cared, if he actually was. Despite knowing the nature of the cloud guardian, she was intrigued; it was as if she saw a weak side of the elusive guardian. She moved closer, making sure that no sound was produced by her footsteps. Chrome sat down so that there were at least three people that could sit in between.

This was the first time Chrome could see the guardian's face this closely. She remembered how this man's future self saved her from dying – again – when Mukuro's presence suddenly disappeared. It was a hazy image, but she was quite sure it was him, although an older and mature Hibari Kyouya, held her hand to help her realize she can save herself.

She blushed at how high her praises are for him. Chrome's world has always evolved around Rokudo Mukuro after all and she never really socialized with anyone else, except for Tsuna. Nevertheless, she had to thank him. Although she knew the man before him hated Mukuro so much, he had made a difference in her life like him.

They never talked afterwards, except from when she had called out to alert him and even going as far to call him _Cloud Man_. But he was engaged in a fight and she did not really hear a response from him so it was hardly a conversation. She thought of the guardian as someone so hard to understand; or is it that he is simply just that?

'Definitely not.' Chrome sighed to herself. Even if he was a man of few words, his actions expressed how strongly he felt towards anything.

Despite his cold attitude towards everyone, maybe except Dino, she admired him for being such a good warrior. Even without proper training, she thought that maybe, he could easily beat anyone. Except Tsuna or Mukuro, maybe. But still, her mind argued, he was exceptional with what he does. She admired him, and that was it. Probably. After all, she was used to looking at things from the sidelines, from the bleachers even.

She moved a little closer and stared at his face for a while and concluded that he even look as amazing as his skills. That thought surprised her too. She was not the girl you go to when you want to know if someone was good-looking or not, but that does not change the fact that she is a girl and she knows who they like and he certainly fits the bill. Her lightly tinted face hovered nearer to the guardian's cheeks. She felt the need to thank him after all, and a magazine that she had read from Haru's collection said that kisses were the best way to show appreciation. But Hibari was not exactly your average guy…

Her musings was suddenly halted as the car gave a mild jerk, although not strong enough to wake up the sleeping guardians, except for the light sleeper Hibari. His eyes opened and scrutinized the female just inches away from him. Chrome immediately moved away and scrambled back to her original seat beside Kyoko without looking back.

She could not believe her luck and mentally cursed herself for allowing it to even happen. Her head turned away from the direction where Hibari was seating as she could _almost_ swear she heard the Namimori discipline committee head's tonfas being clutched. But no footsteps were ever heard so, after some minutes of Chrome intently looking at the steel floor below her, she allowed her eyes to fall upon the guardian seated far from everyone else. She was glad to see him close his eyes again, although he had his tonfas ready, as if he was just waiting to strike anyone who would come near.

Faint rays of light started to seep through the edges of the window, where the material used to tint windows failed to cover. They touched her pale skin as she continued thinking of the guardian that no else could reach.

'This might be as close that I could get but,' Chrome thought to herself as a smile graced her tired face. Seeing another side of the Hibari Kyouya already gave her a sense of contentment. She liked where she was right now, but somehow she could not help but want to grow closer, maybe even intimate with him.

'I won't give up.'

_Hello everyone! You probably thought I was dead, no? :P All I've been doing here in is read 1896 stories so I thought of doing one as well. This will be a series of oneshots related to the awesome song Here (In Your Arms) by the equally amazing hellogoodbye. Probably will update every weekend, I'll try. And sorry to everyone who's waiting for the next Light and Darkness chapter! D: Let's all hope I get inspired mwahahaha :P_


	2. 02 Lips can touch

"_Because our lips_

_can touch._

_And our cheeks_

_can brush._

_Our lips_

_can touch;_

_here."_

Chrome stared at the assorted bottles of beer and glasses of different alcoholic beverages that were in the table in front of her as she hastily accepted another glass of tequila from the already drunk and slightly dazed Haru. She was a drinker; it was not as if she could help it. She was part of a mafia after all and her liking for it grew so much already after random parties usually hosted by Tsuna, coerced by Reborn. Since she could control her powers better now, she had little to no problem maintaining her illusionary organs and could drink as much as she wanted to.

Haru and Kyoko cheered her on to drink even more, like them. She did not expect Kyoko to actually like drinking as well since she left an impression of being extremely demure. There were times where she had to rely on gatherings like this to let off some steam. Chrome liked them enough to drink another shot, although her mind was telling her not to.

Her lips touched the rim of the glass and drank its contents in one gulp. Haru cheered her on while Kyoko clapped her hands while smiling widely.

That shot sealed her mind shut as Chrome's surroundings started to turn hazy. She closed her eyes for sometime as she tried to listen to her subordinates instead before socializing again.

"Oooi, won't you pass that bottle?"

"Oh, here you go Gokudera-san."

"Tch."

"Yamamoto's dad has the best sushi in this whole town~!"

"Oh god, I think I'm gonna faint…"

"Ahh, I should get going now or else Master would reprimand meee!"

Before she knew it, all the sounds started to fade as she went off to sleep amidst the clatter and chatter of the Vongola family.

oxoxo

He obviously wanted to get out of the cramped little space filled with too much people drinking and dancing like there was no one who was sane anymore. That much was easy to see even if you did not know Hibari that much. He did drink a little though, as a result of a challenge between Reborn… he soon regretted that though as his vision slightly blurred and his patience finally hit zero.

If only Tsuna did not confiscate their weapons before entering the room, he would have tonfa-d everyone with no exception right now. He glanced at the hideous-looking wall clock that hung above the other side of the room. It was almost two in the morning, yet the people were still either singing or drinking… except for one Chrome Dokuro who was sleeping with still a glass in hand. He also noticed how everyone's weapons sat beside her. He then decided to leave the karaoke bar for good, besides no one would really notice his departure.

oxoxo

"Heeey! I want everyone to dance okay~!"

A very lively Kyoko started to sing a song no one seems to have heard before but everyone starts dancing anyway, making Hibari grimace as he had to pass these people before he makes it to the exit. Hibari struggled as he made his way in between the throng of people wildly dancing.

"Eh, that's all you can do? Look at this!"

"Hibariii where are ya goin'~?"

"Oh shi— Sorry about that~"

He stumbled as someone jumped and hit him upon reaching ground… only to collide with someone else which finally caused him to fall. Hibari would swear under his breath to bite _everyone_ to death after this was all over but he could not because he hit the table and the fell _again_, and made the sleeping guardian's body as his cushion.

And if it could not get worse, he thought he brushed his (dare I say it) lips against hers. It did not mean anything much for him, but he knew Mukuro resided within this female vessel. His cheeks turned red in anger and some other feeling he did not know. He shuffled his hands as he tried to lift his body up and away from this position.

Then he felt some cold liquid seep through his shirt. It was her drink and it spilled as he made his far from graceful fall. He cursed as he got up and angrily grabbed his tonfa from the table beside the girl. He looked back and is glad that everyone was so busy being drunk that no one noticed what had happened. '_It's definitely about time I leave this place._' He muttered to himself and opened the door.

She whimpered as she woke up from her nap.

"… Are you leaving Hibari-san? A-Ahh! It spilled!"


	3. 03 In love with you suddenly

_And this chapter shall be another rendition of the events in Target 169/Episode 95. Just think of it as fiction based from canon, lol :P_

_I fell in love, in love,_

_with you suddenly._

_Now there's no place else_

_I could be but_

_here in your arms._

_

* * *

_

'Chrome…'

'Mukuro-sama!'

_Where are you? I need you!_

'I am… here…'

* * *

With each passing second, her vision blurs, her breathing staggered. Her hopes of seeing Mukuro again shattered. The bond they shared was both a blessing and a curse for Chrome: while it gave her a reason to live again, it also would be the cause of her death. But she could not do anything; she owed him everything after all.

Now she had friends, a family and _him_.

Only he was not there when she needed him the most. She was glad he was there as they fought Glo Xinia together but it cost them both an arm and a leg. Mukuro was considerably weakened thus causing the illusion that takes the place of Chrome's organs deteriorate at the same time. She would have wiped the tears that spilled from her tired eyes but she could not even move her own body anymore. _And he would not be there to wipe them off, like before_.

And when she thought her condition could not get any worse, Mukuro suddenly disappears. From her body, '_yes_' she sadly thought. From her life, '_lies_' she would sob. How was she supposed to live without Mukuro? He is the only reason she was still here after all.

Before tears threatened to spill again from her amethyst eyes, she suddenly hears herself whimper from a coughing fit that spews out blood on top of the pristine white blanket that covered her petite frame. Her vision gets clouded by the tears brought on by the pain she feels physically and emotionally as the hands of Bianchi holds on to her, telling her not to give up.

"Chrome! Chrome!" the tenth Vongola boss' strained voice joins the poison chef's pleas for her to remain strong.

Slowly, she tries to breathe and clear her mind. Chrome hears footsteps and a '_thud_' sound, as if someone just fell. She tries to piece together these and wishes that it could be Mukuro who has arrived, finally here to save her again. But she knows in her heart it could not be him. It would not be him. She knew that.

What surprises her out of her thinking though is Tsuna's similarly stunned voice, declaring the presence of the one who was least likely to come for her out of the whole Vongola family, knowing that she is affiliated with the Rokudo Mukuro.

"Hibari-san!"

Suddenly, rough, calloused hands gently lift her throbbing head (from the pain or from thinking about the sudden gesture, she does not know) away from the feather pillow and closer to the persona of the Cloud Guardian whose eyes looked at her in a way she has never seen before.

The female Mist Guardian looks at him intently and suddenly, she felt like no words needed to be spoken.

* * *

Ten years ago, he would have looked at the girl in a disgusted and demeaning manner and he was sure they were both aware of that.

He is Hibari Kyoya and he never looked at anyone eye-to-eye unless they were of the same fighting prowess. And to date, that would only be four people he would acknowledge as "people" and not herbivores. Certainly, the illusionist's puppet is not part of that set.

But ten years have passed now and he has changed, matured if some would put it. He was still ruthless, even more so at the discovery of the Vongola boxes, but he had more patience and respect for other people… including the confined woman's ten years later equivalent.

Under the pretense of settling the score between the Mist Guardian, he used his position in the family to keep track of both Mukuro and Chrome. No one really saw a hidden agenda beneath this; it was known fact that he hated the illusionist until now and never questioned Hibari's actions. But as the years passed by, he found himself more interested in the purple-haired female instead. But being Hibari, he shrugged the odd feeling of wanting something not related to his growth as a fighter and a mafia member as something that would not put his life in trouble.

He knew he was just lying to himself though. When the Sun Guardian came back with a wounded Chrome Dokuro in his arms, he was _thankful_. _The_ Hibari Kyoya was thankful as Kusakabe informed him of the latest events regarding the battle between Chrome and the Millefiore.

"Sasagawa Ryohei will come here after Sawada makes his decision about attacking the Millefiore base. But before that, do you want to meet with Dokuro Chrome?"

"It's fine. Mukuro is no longer there, right?"

Hibari thought that finally, nothing could harm her. After all, she was with the Vongola family now… with _him _now.

But in the end, it was still Mukuro who owned her. Her deteriorating health caused by whatever in the world was happening to the Mist Guardian was making her closer to death by the second. While he would not be caught dead wishing for the illusionist's safety, it was all he could do as he made his way beside the bed-ridden Chrome. He wanted her to live.

* * *

"If you die, we'll all be in trouble."

The warmth of his voice caught her by surprise as he reached for her hand. The way his calloused hands held on to her small hand made her feel like there was still a reason for her to live. Hibari started to speak with such clarity and power.

"You have the Vongola Ring. Have you ever wondered why Rokudo Mukuro gave you the ring? You only need to draw out a little power of the ring to survive."

Her hands slightly trembled at the sudden change of his voice and turned his head towards him. She was afraid that he was angry for she was so pathetic and helpless. But the way his eyes looked at her told Chrome otherwise. It was comforting and almost sweet, totally different from the way he looked at her ten years ago: full of contempt and anger.

"You don't want to die yet, do you?"

His eyes suddenly shined like the brightest star for her. He made her want to live again.

* * *

_The dialogue all came from the anime and the manga :) Just twisted them a liiitle bit to fit my story mwahahaha!_

_All I can say is… DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE OBSERVATION SKILLS OF A CRAZY FANGIRL! Hahaha! We can and we will make sense of the slightest (probably unintentional) hints Amano-sensei can ever drop! XD_


	4. 04 Next to me

_I like where you sleep,_

_When you sleep, next to me._

_I like where you sleep:_

_Here._

* * *

After a quick flick of her trident, a fallen man's ear-piercing scream prompted the blind rushing in of another man… which did not really last long as she opened her mouth to summon an illusion that silenced the man who hastily ran towards her.

Dokuro Chrome, Vongola's Mist Guardian, hid herself behind a now opened room and sent out Mukurowl to survey the area and to help the other guardian who was her partner in the mission. She tilted slightly her head to look around and make sure that her unlikely companion was still in the area.

In the distance, she could see faint glimmers of light which bounced off from the multitude of weapons that met as the Cloud Guardian mercilessly fought back without much effort. Hibari told her to stay away from him because she would only slow him down. Chrome sighed and thought that at least he allowed her to be present in the scene because the first time that they were paired up for a mission, he bluntly refused and went to do the mission without even informing her.

Even after Mukuro has regained his body from the Vendice and have long left not just her body but also her mind, Hibari treated her with indifference. She could not really blame him, after all, according to Mukuro, that match with Hibari might be the most scarring one for the latter.

Her thoughts were cut short when Mukurowl stormed back to her side after informing her that Hibari tried to harm it like it was one of the enemies. She sighed and raised her hand to signal the white owl to come back to her.

"Mukurowl, here." She silently whispered to her box ring animal who cooed as it perched on top of her slender frame.

* * *

"Tch, what an annoyance."

Hibari snarled as his tonfa met with another mafia man's jaw. He did not need the Kokuyo girl's assistance in this fight. Or in _any other thing_, he thought as kicked hard a man who charged at him with a knife.

He turned his head around as he heard the rush of angry footsteps coming toward his way. With a shrug of indifference, his ring connected with the box weapon on his cold hands. Hands that were made to kill.

Another swift move of his arm, coupled with the insurmountable prowess of his Vongola-bestowed power (as much as he did not want to admit it) marked the definite silence of that rushing group of enemy mafia. But that was short lived as more tried to attack him.

He was Hibari Kyoya and he was not someone one could take down with sheer number. More hysterical shouts and pained screaming followed the sound of his tonfa and god knows whatever came out of that box weapon that was made to kill, and when he thought it was done, more enemies ran towards him only to meet their demise.

He figured that whoever this family's boss was (he did not bother reading what Sawada Tsunayoshi gave him about the mission) did not do enough research.

'This is gonna take long,' he told himself, annoyed and seemingly bored.

* * *

It was after some time has passed that she began to question if Hibari was still okay as she never remembered a fight that had him involved to last this long. He would never let himself be defeated ever again after he suffered humiliation from the hands of Rokudo Mukuro, and that was that. His "resolve" was that strong that he is stubborn enough to reject the help of other people.

But Chrome grew worried as she waited and waited.

Swallowing hard, she stepped out of dark room and into the larger chamber where the Cloud Guardian decided to fight the opposing mafia family by himself. She frowned when she remembered how Mukurowl almost got bitten to death for simply presenting itself to his aid. Chrome did not think that the Cloud Man was "bad." No, not at all, she thought. Maybe a little bad-mannered but she always consoled herself with the thought that he just did not know how to deal with people.

Chrome stumbled as her feet connected with an unconscious body lying beneath her. She retracted her foot and looked around.

'Cloud man might not be far from here.'

True enough, after a few minutes of more walking and avoiding the littered bodies on the floor, she found the fellow guardian resting the same way he did in school rooftops.

She stared for a while and smiled when she realized this might be the only time she would ever see him unguarded and so peaceful. He looked very calm – kind, even – like this and that made Chrome want to treasure this moment. And without realizing it, she had already walked towards him and knelt down next to him…

And suddenly, a rough hand grabber hers. Chrome gasped in surprise and shock, thinking that it was an enemy waiting for a chance to jump at her lack of defense. As she tugged, she realized it was the sleeping guardian beside her.

"If you're staying, at least keep quiet."

He did not even bother opening his eyes and simply snarled at the still startled female.

She wanted to get up and leave because of embarrassment and the fact that he _knew_ she was staring but then he did not let go of her hand. Then her cheeks reddened. Then she suddenly did not know how to feel. Then smiled.

'I might as well enjoy the view.'

* * *

HELLOOO! Woah, finally an update, yeah? I actually started on this last year but then my hard drive decided to troll me and deleted _everything_ on it. So yeah.

Next (and last, sadly!) chapter will be up before May ends!


End file.
